


The Balcony

by State_of_Dreaming



Category: She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018)
Genre: Adora shows up in a flashback, Angella is mentioned - Freeform, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Bow is a good but worried boyfriend, Canon Compliant, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Flashbacks, Glimmer Needs a Hug (She-Ra), He’s allowed to be worried, Hurt/Comfort, I am a sucker for past-present parallels, Micah is a Good Dad, Post-Canon, Some of the other princesses are mentioned, This is my first finalized fic, idk what i am doing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-24
Updated: 2020-07-24
Packaged: 2021-03-05 04:41:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,190
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25478602
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/State_of_Dreaming/pseuds/State_of_Dreaming
Summary: Glimmer and Micah have the father-daughter reunion talk they never got in the show after Glimmer has a nightmareThere’s also Glimbow
Relationships: Bow & Glimmer (She-Ra), Bow/Glimmer (She-Ra), Glimmer & Micah (She-Ra)
Comments: 20
Kudos: 69





	The Balcony

**Author's Note:**

> I binge-watched She-ra a few weeks ago and I wanted to see Glimmer and Micah actually have a conversation instead of a 5-second reunion hug, but they didn’t. So here we are. There’s also Glimbow because I’m soft for them and fluffy Glimbow is good for the soul.
> 
> This is my first fic on here, idk what I’m doing, please enjoy

Glimmer woke with a start, sitting straight up, drenched in sweat and gasping for breath. She gripped the mattress cover beneath her and tried to slow her breathing, hoping to steady her rapid heartbeat. As tears gathered in her eyes, she realized the dark room around her was eerily quiet. Usually when Glimmer had one of these episodes, Bow was awake in an instant, wrapping his arms around her or holding her hands and instructing her to breath with him. The fact that he wasn’t only made her more scared.

No. Glimmer knew she had to be rational. One look to her right told her Bow was simply asleep, but he was fine. Everyone was fine. Bow was beside her, Adora and Catra were a couple rooms away, and her mother was—no. Her _father_ was down the hall.

A month or two had passed since the war against the Horde ended and Glimmer still found herself forgetting in these hectic moments after a nightmare that her parents essentially switched places.

Feeling restless and knowing she couldn’t stop the wave of tears behind her eyes, Glimmer quickly considered her options. As much as she wanted to curl up in Bow’s strong, comforting arms, she couldn’t wake him up. He spent the past couple days on a diplomatic mission with Adora, Entrapta, and Hordak to one of the many planets once under Horde Prime’s control that the princesses reached out to over the past months. Glimmer knew they didn’t get back until almost midnight. Bow needed sleep and waking him up would just be selfish.

Instead Glimmer got up, carefully pulling the duvet up over where she had just been lying. She grabbed her robe but didn’t bother with slippers. The cool floor beneath her feet reminded her that she was safe inside Bright Moon Castle.

Once the door to her and Bow’s room closed behind her, Glimmer channeled her magic into one hand and produced a fuzzy glowing ball, lighting the hallway just enough to see her way. Her hand shook against her will, creating a strobe effect around her. She walked a few paces down the hall, pressed her back up against one of the walls, and slid down to the floor. With her free hand wrapped around her knees, she let herself cry.

Glimmer hated shedding tears over these stupid dreams. She knew they weren’t real, she knew they were all in her head, but night after night they still _felt_ real. They still terrified her. And crying was her body’s natural reaction to the fear. At least that’s what Perfuma said.

Perfuma had taken it upon herself to meet with each princess —and honorary princess— to discuss their varying levels are PTSD after the war. Glimmer had visited Plumeria and talked about her dreams with her fellow ruler on several occasions, each time with the naive hope Perfuma would figure out some way to get rid of them. But Glimmer always got the same response from the nature princess: You can’t make the dreams magically stop.

When her tears finally slowed, Glimmer lifted her head to glance up and down the hallway. Thank goodness no guards were on duty to see her break down. Being vulnerable in front of anyone besides Bow, Adora, and _maybe_ Catra was also something Glimmer couldn’t stand. With another deep breath the young queen shakily climbed to her feet, raising the flickering light in one hand and dusting off her robe with the other. She still felt uneasy and knew if she returned to bed she would just lie awake. So she began walking.

Even as Glimmer wandered aimlessly through the corridors, looking at the walls she grew up in, she subconsciously took lesser known routes through the castle, avoiding any guards that may still be at their posts keeping watch. Years of sneaking out against her mother’s will meant Glimmer knew the ins and outs of the castle like the back of her hand.

Glimmer finally stopped when she looked up and found herself in front of the door to her dad’s room. She blinked in confusion, momentarily distracted. When she started walking Glimmer hadn’t planned on visiting her dad, especially not in the middle of the night. With all the thoughts bouncing around her head, the idea hadn’t even crossed her mind. But as she stared at the door, she found herself raising a fist to knock on the wood. Then she hesitated, her hand stopping mere inches way.

Of course Glimmer had interacted with her father since the war ended. There was a whole day-long meeting dedicated to bringing King Micah up to speed with current events. But outside of that day and any political discussions, the two of them hadn’t really taken the time to have a one-on-one conversation about…well, _anything_.

Glimmer raised her fist once again. Maybe it was time they did.

\---

_“Daddy?”_

_Glimmer’s trembling whisper sounded too loud in her parents’ silent bedroom._

_“Daddy?” She asked again, just a little louder, succeeding in rousing King Micah from his slumber. Her father had never been a deep sleeper._

_The king sat up and saw Glimmer standing in the doorway gripping her blanket tightly, wide eyes sparkling with tears and bottom lip quivering in the moonlight that dimly filled the room. Glimmer watched him check that her mother was still fast asleep by his side before beckoning for his daughter to join him, patting an open spot on the bed beside him._

_Glimmer dashed as fast as her little legs could carry her across the room to her father’s side of the bed, practically tripping over the pink blanket trailing behind her. Micah swung his legs over the edge of the mattress and reached down to pull her up onto the bed._

_“What’s wrong baby girl?” he asked in a hushed voice, using one thumb to wipe some of the tears from her eyes._

_“I had a-a scary d-dream,” Glimmer whimpered through her sobs. The young princess shook all over and some snot dripped from her nose. It was evident she had cried for quite a bit before mustering enough courage to brave the dark castle hall leading to her parents’ bedroom._

_“Hey, it’s okay, I’ve got you,” Micah whispered soothingly as he pulled Glimmer into his lap. He wrapped his arms around her little body in a tight hug and ran a couple fingers though her short hair as she bawled into his shoulder. “I’ve got you,” he repeated, his reassurance giving her some comfort._

_After sitting there for a few minutes in her dad’s safe grasp, Glimmer’s crying slowed. Micah glanced over his shoulder to make sure her muffled wails into his now wet pajama sleeve did not wake Angella up. Then he turned back to his daughter, offering her a smile._

_“Mama is trying to sleep so let’s go out on the balcony and we can talk, okay?” Glimmer sniffled and nodded in response to her father’s offer._

_“Okay.” Micah repeated. He scooped her up in his arms, slid his feet into the slippers by the bed, and carefully made his way over to the double balcony doors. He opened one as quietly as possible and slipped outside._

_Bright Moon was gorgeous at night, even in the midst of a war. The unique architecture was visible in each of the buildings below which boasted high ceilings and large glass windows. During the day they let in the perfect amount of natural light to brighten up any home or business. At night, they reflected the moon and stars above, along with the dazzling lights that lined every street. The streetlights acted as guides for any late-night travelers, often those returning from a battle nowadays. But that evening, no one was out and about. The world around Bright Moon Castle was quiet and calm._

_A silvery glow washed over the king and princess as Micah slowly closed the door behind him. Glimmer’s pastel pink and purple layered hair shimmered in the moonlight, just like her mother’s._

_The balcony was Glimmer’s favorite place in the whole castle. She’d been on it countless times, almost always with her father, but each visit something was slightly different, be it a sight or a sound, and suddenly she felt like she was seeing the kingdom for the first time. Her eyes grew to the size of dinner plates and the gears in her young mind turned as Glimmer took in the view. She smiled through her sniffles, the lights distracting her as she stared at them in wonder. Her father often said she was already curious about the world, already smart. Like her mother._

_“What happened in your dream?” Micah finally asked his daughter. This drew Glimmer’s attention away from her future land and up at his face. The feeling of fear that had temporarily disappeared began to return._

_“You and Mama were g-gone! I w-was in the, the castle and I-I couldn’t f-find you!” Tears filled her eyes again, threatening to fall as she repeated her words. “I c-couldn’t find y-you…”_

_“Shhh,” Micah hushed her, kissing her forehead and rocking her back and forth. “It’s okay, it was just a dream.”_

_“B-But it felt real,” she cried._

_“Dreams can feel very real and very scary Glimmer but you have to remember it’s all in your head,” he explained, his voice very soothing to the frightened princess._

_“I k-know.”_

_Micah smiled again. “And I’m right here. Doesn’t that make the dream feel less scary?”_

_After a moment of considering her father’s words, Glimmer looked up at him with those big pink eyes and nodded._

_“Good.” He gave her another kiss on the head._

_The young girl didn’t know how long her father held her there, but soon she felt her eyelids grow heavy, sleep calling to her. With her face buried in Micah’s chest, Glimmer eventually dozed off._

_“How about we get you back to bed, hm?” The king’s quiet words fell on deaf ears as he turned to go back inside and return his sleeping daughter to her room._

_But just before he reached the door, Micah said something else. Despite being asleep, the promise still wormed its way into Glimmer’s mind as she drifted into a new, happier dream:_

_“No matter what nightmares you have baby girl, I’ll always be here. So will your mother. We’re not going anywhere.”_

\---

“Dad? Are you awake?”

Micah, still the light sleeper he always was, quickly sat up in bed and blinked his eyes open. As his vision adjusted to the bright light in Glimmer’s hand and she could feel his eyes on her, the queen suddenly felt quite nostalgic. It had been a long time since she stood in his doorway in the middle of the night, eyes wet with tears and bottom lip trembling.

“Glimmer? Are you alright?”

“Yeah, I—I just had a nightmare…” She trailed off, abruptly realizing how stupid she sounded. “I know I’m an adult and I can deal with my own problems,” she hurriedly added, starting to ramble, fresh tears prickling her already watery eyes. “But Bow usually helps me calm down and he had a long day, so I didn’t want to wake him up, but I couldn’t stay in bed, so I found myself wandering the castle and ended up—”

“It’s okay Glimmer,” Micah interrupted, giving her a warm smile. After a moment of neither father, nor daughter moving, he awkwardly patted the spot next to him, beckoning Glimmer to sit down, just like he used to.

She sighed and extinguished the glowing orb in her hand, no longer needing it to see in the moonlight shining through the large window. She walked across the room and sat down beside her father. Glimmer looked down at her hands which she clasped together in her lap in an effort to keep them from shivering with anxiety, but the nervous movement simply continued in her leg as she subconsciously began tapping her foot against the floor.

Micah looked her up and down. “You seem really shaken up by this…dream.”

Glimmer simply nodded in agreement. Denying his words wouldn’t do her any good.

“Do you want to talk about it?”

She sighed, beginning to fiddle with her hands again. “There isn’t much to talk about. It’s the same dream I’ve had since the war ended.”

Glimmer glanced up at her father’s silence and saw his dark eyes encouraging her to continue.

“I haven’t really told anyone besides Bow and Perfuma,” she murmured, dropping her gaze again.

Micah nodded in understanding. “If you don’t want to tell me you don’t have to.”

“No, I…I want to.” Glimmer inhaled and exhaled, steadying her voice. “I’m back on Horde Prime’s ship and…and he’s forcing me to watch his stupid clones torture you and Bow and everyone and then he chips you all, one by,” She stopped, her desperate attempts to not cry failing as her shoulders began shaking, tears filling her eyes. “One by one.” After a moment Glimmer felt her father’s arm stiffly rest across her shoulders. The contact made Glimmer realized they had barely touched since she hugged him on the battlefield. “And all I can do is watch because he doesn’t stop no matter how much I beg,” she sniffed, wiping at her eyes in vain. “Then h-he pushes me on to that transfer pad and beams me right down in the middle of all of you with your glowing eyes a-and weapons at the ready t-to attack me and then I…I wake up.”

At the beginning of her dream re-telling Glimmer promised herself she wouldn’t break down again, but by the end she was sobbing. It was still too fresh her mind, it still felt too real.

Micah hesitantly reached his other arm around her. Glimmer hadn’t realized how much she missed her father’s embrace. Now, as she leaned against him, crying into his chest, she felt…safe. Micah gently rested his chin on top of her head and hugged her close. Neither said a word for a while.

“I’m sorry,” Glimmer finally murmured, sniffling and straightening back into a sitting position.

“For what?” He asked, loosening his grip on her.

“For waking you up just to cry on your pajama shirt.” She dragged one hand across her wet cheek, emphasizing her point.

Micah shrugged. “It’s alright. Not like you haven’t done it before.”

“Yeah but I was a little kid, I got a free pass for this kind of stuff.”

“You’re my daughter Glimmer. You’ll always get a free pass for this kind of stuff,” he said with a smile.

“Thanks,” she mumbled in response.

“You said you get these dreams often?” The question was gentle and Glimmer knew he wasn’t going to force her to reveal anything, but she answered anyway. She wanted to.

“Yeah. There’s no pattern they just…happen, I guess,” she tried to explain, gesturing vaguely with her hands.

Micah nodded.

“And I know it’s not real. Horde Prime is gone, everyone is safe.” Well, almost everyone, but Glimmer wasn’t going to bring up Angella now. “But—”

“It’s still scary,” Micah finished and she bobbed her head in agreement. He sighed. “I’m sorry Glimmer.”

“It’s not your fault,” she said with another sniff. “The war is going to affect all of us for a long time, maybe even the rest of our lives. Might as well get used to it.”

“I still wish I could help.”

Glimmer shook her head. “You have your own problems to deal with Dad.”

“But you’re still my daughter and I don’t like seeing you cry,” he said matter-of-factly.

Knowing that was the end of the conversation, Glimmer remained quiet, staring at the place where the floor in front of them connected to the balcony door.

Micah followed her gaze. “We could go out on the balcony,” he suggested. “For old times’ sake. Besides, some fresh air might help you feel better.”

Glimmer nodded. “I’d like that.”

\---

_Glimmer hadn’t stood on her parents’ balcony in a long time. Once her dad disappeared, she barely stepped foot in her mom’s room, let alone made it all the way to the two balcony doors._

_Now, with the bed Queen Angella and King Micah once shared made up on both sides and Glimmer officially queen of Bright Moon, she braced herself against the railing and took a deep breath of the night air. It sent a chill down her spine._

_The bittersweet celebration after her coronation that day had been cut short when some scouts delivered news of the Horde’s next move. Glimmer spent the rest of the afternoon and evening in Bright Moon Castle’s Meeting Room discussing what was next for the Rebellion with Bow and Adora. They worked late into the night until Glimmer was the only one awake. That’s when she snuck away and ended up in her parents’ room._

_Glimmer wasn’t sure why her feet led her to the balcony but now that she was there, she felt like she had to do something or say something. Anything._

_“You said you would always be here Dad,” she finally began, addressing the stars above. The ones that hadn’t been there before the portal. Before Angella’s sacrifice. “You said Mom would too.” She tightened her grip on the cold metal railing and closed her eyes in a feeble effort to prevent tears. “You said you wouldn’t go anywhere.” Her voice broke. “You said you’d be here no matter what.” She opened her eyes, hoping to see something, but the white lights simply winked down at her mockingly._

_Glimmer’s sadness quickly turned to anger. “What happened?” She yelled, receiving no answer. “I trusted you to be here and help me! I can’t do this alone!” Angry tears fell in rivers down her cheeks as she continued in a lower voice, arguing with herself. “Yes, I know I have Bow and Adora and Aunt Castaspella, but they aren’t you! Bow and Adora aren’t royalty, they’ve never run a kingdom! And Aunt Casta has Mystacor to worry about! She can’t stay here just because I’m not grown up enough to figure this out on my own.”_

_When she finally paused to breathe, letting out a choked sob, Glimmer noticed her palms ached from holding on to the railing like a lifeline. She let go and flexed her fingers in front of her, focusing on them instead of the inky sky that wasn’t going to give her the responses she wanted. Pink sparkles hovered just above her skin, charged by her emotions. The tingling sensation of her new magic quickly erased the pain in her palms._

_Yes, Glimmer had always wanted more power. It was inconvenient and exhausting to recharge every day, not to mention she felt like some weak link on every mission. But this? This magic belonged to her mother, or at least a real queen. Not the imposter she felt like when sitting upon Bright Moon’s throne. She was ridden with guilt, taking what once belonged to Angella._

_The new queen glared at her hands as if they weren’t a part of her, as if she could blame them for everything. It would be easier that way._

_“Glimmer?” Bow’s voice startled her, and she quickly turned around, reaching to wipe the back of one hand across her eyes, but it was too late. Based on the concern evident in their tired eyes, Bow and Adora must’ve been standing there long enough to hear ample evidence that contradicted any excuse Glimmer could come up with. She cursed under her breath, regretting leaving the door open when she walked in and allowing her two friends to enter without drawing her attention._

_“I thought you two were asleep,” she said, trying to keep her voice steady. It was a weak answer, but she couldn’t think of anything else to say._

_“We were,” Adora confirmed. “But Bow woke up and when he saw you were gone, he woke me up. So we came looking for you.”_

_Glimmer didn’t say anything. Instead she wrapped her arms around her middle and turned to watch the sky again. She couldn’t look at either of her best friends’ faces right now. Silence fell across the balcony for a moment and all any of them could hear was the wind._

_“Hey.” Glimmer didn’t know Bow walked up behind her until she felt his hand on her shoulder. “We know this is hard,” he started, reaching with his other hand to turn her face towards him, their eyes meeting. There was a passionate fire in his dark eyes that surprised Glimmer. She rarely saw Bow this serious. “But you’re going to be a great queen.”_

_She sniffed, wiping at her eyes again. “How do you know?”_

_“Because you’re a natural leader!” Adora answered this time, coming up on Glimmer’s other side. “You’re the reason the Princess Alliance is back together Glimmer.”_

_Bow nodded. “And you’ve saved us more times than I can count.”_

_“Besides, we’re the Best Friends Squad!” Adora exclaimed and her friend could practically hear the smile spreading across her face. “That alone is enough to get all of us through any challenge.”_

_“Hey, that’s my line!” Bow said, frowning at Adora for a moment before returning his gaze to Glimmer. He looked less serious and more like himself, that dorky smile he had since they were kids returning to his face. “But she’s right.”_

_“But–” Glimmer tried to interject._

_“Sure, Adora and I have never ruled a kingdom, but that doesn’t mean we can’t help you figure it out.”_

_“Bow–”_

_He shook his head. “Don’t ‘Bow’ me, you know it’s true. We always work things out.”_

_Glimmer sighed, pulling away from him and leaning against the railing again, looking down at Bright Moon below. “But I don’t even know where to start.”_

_The queen could almost feel Adora and Bow exchange glances before joining her on the railing._

_“Once we have our next plan of attack against the Horde, we’ll take the time to figure out how this whole ruling thing works.” Adora promised. “Okay?”_

_Glimmer nodded. “Okay.”_

_Bow wrapped one arm around her. “Everything is going to turn out alright Glimmer. Adora and I will always be here.”_

_“Yeah,” Adora agreed, adding herself to the half-hug. “We’re not going anywhere.”_

\---

“I came and stood out here the night after my coronation.” Glimmer blurted out, gripping the balcony railing as Micah turned to shut the door behind them. He was right. The fresh air drying her tears and filling her lungs made her feel a lot better.

“What for?”

She paused, remember that night. “I think I just…yelled at the sky,” she said sheepishly.

Micah approached the railing, stopping beside his daughter. “Oddly therapeutic, isn’t it?”

Glimmer looked up at him a bit surprised. “Yeah…”

It was obvious she was interested in more of an explanation, so Micah elaborated. “I did it quite often on Beast Island. Though it was more of a whisper yell. A real yell would attract some nasty creatures.”

“Like what?” Glimmer still knew little about the deadly island besides it basically being a dumping ground for First One’s tech. In the time since the war ended, Micah, Entrapta, Bow, and Adora had returned to Beast Island, scouring the land for any other poor souls, or in Entrapta’s case, old tech that may still be there and they came up empty in the “poor souls” department. That narrowed down the number of people who had survived Beast Island to just them, a whopping four. Five if you count Swift Wind.

“Pookas mostly.”

“Pookas? Bow said they were cute!”

Micah smiled, a mischievous glint in his eyes. “I didn’t say they weren’t. But they’re quite deadly in packs.”

Silence fell over the balcony. Glimmer wanted to ask more questions about the island, about where her father had been for so long, about whatever the heck Pookas were, but she couldn’t find the words. Instead, she studied the distant skyline, marveling at the stars and new greenery that still looked so out of place in Etheria until Micah broke the silence.

“You look just like your mother in the moonlight.” He meant it as a complement, but his daughter could hear the bittersweet undertone in his words.

Glimmer gave a chuckle that sounded a bit forced. “It’s hard not to with this hair,” She said, a sad smile tugging at the corner of her lips as she tucked a stray lock of sparkling purple behind her ear.

“You’re smart like her too. A good trait for a ruler.”

The young queen lowered her gaze to the dark rooftops. “I’m nothing like the ruler she was.”

Micah cocked his head to one side. “What makes you say that?”

“Mom acted like royalty. She had this… _way_ about her that commanded attention. Her height and wings didn’t hurt either,” Glimmer added with a slightly jealous tone. “Mom managed to do everything she needed to do and, for the most part, do it right. She led the Rebellion against the Horde with _no_ Princess Alliance to back her up _and_ kept me out of trouble which was no easy feat. She made a point of spending time with me, being there for me, even when she could have left me in the hands of any nanny of her choosing. I’ve been queen for months, there’s no imminent war for me to deal with anymore, I don’t have some kid to take care of all by myself, and I _still_ have no idea what I’m doing.”

“Everything you said about your mother is true,” Micah started, putting one hand on his daughter’s shoulder. “But you only knew her after she was already queen for many years. Believe me, before you were born, before we even got married, your mother struggled with her role as leader of Bright Moon. It took her a long time to become the ruler you knew her as, but she got there eventually. And you will too.”

“I know, but Dad, I’ve already been an awful queen. You know the whole story, before you came back, I was horrible!” She exclaimed, throwing her hands wide in front of her for emphasis. “I put my friends in constant danger, I tried to use the Heart of Etheria! I didn’t listen to anybody who told me it was dangerous, and I-I almost destroyed the planet! If it weren’t for Adora–”

“But your friends forgave you. And, you didn’t know what the Heart of Etheria was capable of. You can’t blame yourself when you were genuinely trying to help.”

Glimmer sighed. “I guess, but still I–”

“And sometimes you’re going to mess up and need a friend to come rescue you.” Micah lowered himself against the railing so he could look into his daughter’s eyes. “That’s what friends are for. And you’ve got a good group of them Glimmer.”

“Yeah. They’re great” she muttered, the words sounding a bit harsher than intended. The balcony was once again quiet as Glimmer contemplated all the times one of her friends had gotten her out of the holes she dug herself into. Micah didn’t interrupt. Even after so many years apart, Glimmer still had that obvious facial expression that said the gears in her head were hard at work. “They wouldn’t have found you,” She finally admitted in a hushed voice.

Micah gazed at her, confusion etched across his face. “What?”

“Bow and Adora. They wouldn’t have found you if they listen to me. I told them,” she shook her head. “I _ordered_ them not to go to Beast Island. I said it was too dangerous. If they hadn’t gone against my command, you wouldn’t be here.”

Glimmer glanced up, expecting to see her father angry. To her surprise, he was actually smiling. “I told you they were good friends.”

“What–”

Micah held up a hand to stop Glimmer from continuing. “Good friends can tell when you’re wrong.”

She narrowed her eyes at him, confused. “Why aren’t you angry with me? If I had my way, you wouldn’t be here! You’d still be on that awful island…or worse.”

“I can’t be angry at you for not letting your friends rescue me when you didn’t know I was there, Glimmer,” Micah said gently.

The queen fell silent again and returned her gaze to the sky, once again not sure what to say. She wanted to continue arguing but deep down she knew he was right. He didn’t have a real reason to be angry at her. She just felt like she deserved it. Finally she thought of something else to say. “What was it like? Being stuck there for so long…”

Micah considered his daughter’s question for a moment before responding. “It was…hard. There were days I thought I was a goner. Days when I thought I’d never make it out, thought I was just delaying the inevitable draw of the signal or some grisly death by Pookas.” He paused to grab Glimmer’s shoulders and turn her away from the rail so she was facing him. “But it was always you that kept me alive.”

“W-What?”

“All I thought about on Beast Island was you and your mother. Knowing my girls were waiting back in Bright Moon for me kept me alive. I found strength to ignore the signal, to fight and scavenge day after day. You and Angella gave me that strength Glimmer.” Micah released his hold on her, dropping his hands to his sides and looking down with a sigh.

When Micah didn’t say anything else for a moment, Glimmer hesitantly reached out to touch his arm. “Dad?”

“I didn’t know how much time passed,” he admitted, eyes still trained on the balcony floor. “Ask Adora or Bow, they’ll tell you, when they found me, I still thought you were a little girl. Perhaps it was just the island messing with my mind and sense of time but maybe…maybe it was me not wanting to face that you grew up without me. I still don’t. Because that means I failed you. Failed as a father.”

“You didn’t fail me, there was nothing you could do!” Glimmer exclaimed, but her words fell on deaf ears.

“And now you’re queen of Bright Moon, a war hero, practically married–”

Glimmer quickly tried to cut him off. “Bow and I aren’t–”

“I see the way he looks at you,” Micah said, and she couldn’t help but blush. “It’s the same way I looked at your mother.” The old king sighed. “I missed your childhood Glimmer. I missed all the opportunities to make memories.”

“That doesn’t mean it’s too late! I don’t have to be a little kid for us to make memories dad. There are tons of things we can still do together.”

He looked up. “Such as?”

Glimmer thought for a moment. “You could teach me more about sorcery!”

“But Shadow Weaver–”

“Shadow Weaver didn’t have time to teach me everything she taught you. And with her gone, you’re probably the strongest sorcerer on Etheria!”

“I’m not sure about that—”

“Well I am,” Glimmer insisted, a cheeky grin spreading across her face. “And I bet Auntie would back me up.”

Micah scoffed. “Your aunt likes to over-exaggerate things.”

“She’s still right,” Glimmer pointed out. “So, when do we start lessons?”

“Glimmer—”

“Come on! It’ll be fun. Please?” She gave him that same wide-eyed look she used to as a kid.

He put his hands up in surrender, beginning to smile as well. “Fine, fine. Sorcery lessons it is. But don’t expect me to go easy on you.”

“I would never.” A thought occurred to Glimmer. “Do I get to keep your staff?”

“Sure,” Micah said with a smirk. “But a truly powerful sorcerer doesn’t need a fancy staff.”

“Yeah yeah, whatever,” Glimmer said, rolling her eyes. “The staff is still cool.”

“Of course it’s cool. You’re mother designed it for me.”

This made Glimmer pause. “She did?”

Micah nodded. “When we were still just friends Angella surprised me with it. That staff is one of a kind…” he trailed off sadly.

“I’m sorry you didn’t get to see her again Dad,” Glimmer said quietly, after a moment of silence. She had her own mixed feelings over Angella’s sacrifice but she couldn’t imagine how her father felt waiting almost 20 years to see his wife just to find her gone.

“It’s okay. I get to see her in you every day.”

Simple. It was a simple statement. But it brought tears to his daughter’s eyes. Glimmer didn’t open her mouth, sure that trying to talk would just lead to more tears. Instead she flung her arms around Micah, burying her face into his chest. He wrapped his arms around her too.

“Thank you Dad.”

He smiled down at her, tears prickling his eyes as well. “For what?”

“Everything.”

Micah gently kissed to top of her hair. “You’re welcome baby girl.”

\---

Glimmer said goodbye to her father and carefully closed his bedroom door behind her as she entered the hallway, once again channeled her magic into a bright orb and heading off down the hall. The queen felt like a weight had been lifted off her chest and found herself smiling as she walked back through the castle.

A conversation with her father was the last thing Glimmer had expected to get out of wandering the corridors in the middle of the night but she was glad she knocked on his door. It turned out to be exactly what she needed.

As Glimmer approached the her own door, she noticed light spilling out from under it. Her smile twisted into a frown and she sighed, putting out the glow in her hand and reaching for the door handle.

Bow was halfway through pulling on his robe when the door opened, and Glimmer stepped inside. When he saw her, he hurried to the door, quickly slipping his other arm into the empty robe sleeve.

“Hey, are you okay?” He asked, concern evident in his chocolate eyes as he stopped in front of Glimmer, grabbing both her hands in his. He looked and sounded wide awake and Glimmer immediately felt guilty.

“Yeah, I’m fine, did I wake you up? I’m sorry, I was trying to let you sleep. You haven’t been up long, have you?”

Bow shook his head. “No, I just woke up. I was about to go looking for you. Where were you?”

She hesitated before answering. “I went to talk to my dad.”

“…Oh.” Bow furrowed his brows. “In the middle of the night? Why?”

Glimmer knew her boyfriend wouldn’t like the answer, but she wasn’t about to lie. “I had another stupid nightmare.” She mumbled under her breath.

“Glimmer!” Bow exclaimed, his dark eyes widening. “Why didn’t you wake me up and tell me?”

“Because I wanted to let you sleep!”

“I can sleep later! Your feelings are more important to me, you know that.”

“Yeah, I know, but–”

“No ‘buts,’ I was really worried!”

“Bow—”

“When I woke up and you weren’t there I—”

“Bow!”

“ _What?!_ ” Glimmer normally would have smiled as his voice cracked on the word, but she just felt worse. She should have realized how freaked out he would be if he woke before she got back.

“Take a deep breath,” she instructed like he often did to her. Oh the irony. Once Bow inhaled and exhaled, she freed her hands from his and hugged him tightly. “I’m really sorry you were worried but I’m fine. My dad and I talked about it.”

“Are you sure you’re okay?” He asked in a softer voice.

“I promise. Now, let’s just go back to bed, okay?”

“Okay.” Bow didn’t sound entirely convinced but Glimmer felt him nod, his chin knocking against her head just slightly. “Okay, I trust you.” Glimmer pulled back and smiled up at him.

They both hung up their robes in silence and Glimmer climbed onto her respective side of the bed while Bow turned off the light. A moment later, he joined her.

The two of them lay there for a moment, side by side in the dark. Finally Glimmer turned on her side to face her boyfriend.

“Hey Bow?”

He turned over as well so their faces were mere inches apart. “Yeah?”

“Thank you.”

He looked confused. “For what?”

Glimmer shrugged her shoulder that wasn’t trapped against the mattress beneath her. “For caring about me, I guess.” She knew it was a broad answer but there wasn’t one thing she could narrow it down to.

“That’s _real_ specific,” Bow said, a smile slowly returning to his face.

“I’m tired, leave me alone!” Glimmer whined, pulling her hand out from under the covers to push his shoulder.

He smirked and before he could say another word, Glimmer leaned in to press a passionate kiss against his lips. After a few moments that felt too short, they broke apart.

Bow smiled that stupid dorky smile that Glimmer loved so much. “What was that for?”

She grinned. “Just because.”

He chuckled. “I love you.”

“I love you too.”

**Author's Note:**

> Constructive criticism is always welcome!
> 
> Let me know if you like this and would like to read more of my stuff! I have a ton of fanfic ideas for various fandoms, this is just the first one I’ve ever finished
> 
> Edit: I’m glad people have been enjoying this!! I am considering writing more post-canon pieces involving Micah and the BFS and how their lives continue after the war (yes I have fankids I want to write about at some point) so if you liked this, keep an eye out for those!
> 
> Another edit: I am now a cosplayer!! You can find me on tiktok at @izzib4


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